


Your Obedient Servant

by tablemanners



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Boss/Employee Relationship, Bottom Bucky Barnes, Homeless Bucky Barnes, M/M, Master/Servant, Past Relationship(s), Top Steve Rogers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-03
Updated: 2016-08-10
Packaged: 2018-07-29 01:07:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,442
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7664374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tablemanners/pseuds/tablemanners
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bucky is living on the streets of Brooklyn, dirt poor, until he finds an ad for a job as a "personal aid" to the incredibly rich Steve Rogers.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Do not expect normal updates. School is starting up soon, and while I'll try to post as much as I can, I can get lazy. Sorry its a bit short. Please excuse typos, I need to go back through it and proof read it but I'm too lazy right now. Anyway, I hope you enjoy, Stucky is one of my OTP's. Don't worry, there'll be more heartfelt interaction later on.

He was incredibly desperate for a job. So desperate that he would sink low enough to serve another snobby, rich household that was far too lazy to fold their own clothes. Bucky had seen the ad in the Sunday news, which he had dug out of some garbage can on a grubby New York street corner. The ad specified that the job was to be filled by someone in between the ages of 21 and 35, apparently it required a younger person with plenty of energy, or so it seemed. The job description said very little, it read: “Aid to the master of the Rogers household.” Aid was another word for “manservant,” but of course people didn’t speak like that in the 21st century. 

Nevertheless, Bucky couldn’t stand another day unemployed and broke in the middle of Brooklyn. He did his best to swallow his pride the following morning as he searched for the address on the advertisement. Due to being homeless, it was tough to look presentable for a job interview. He did his best to straighten out his clothes, but they still looked ruffled, and the cheap cologne couldn’t cover up his body odor after going without a shower for who knows how long. He was able to comb his hair and check his appearance in a public bathroom mirror, but his hair was undoubtedly greasy and overgrown. He only wished he was able to shave the stubble on his chin. Bucky sighed, knowing there was absolutely nothing he could do about his appearance. 

The address led Bucky to a roomy mansion on the nicer side of Brooklyn, with a large front yard that was nicely kept. The grass was the perfect shade of green, trimmed precisely and without litter, unlike most of Brooklyn. There was a tall, shining gate in front of the house, with a buzzer on it, but the gate was already ajar. Several people were lined down the walkway, chattering amongst themselves as they waited for their turn to be interviewed. Bucky felt a little sick.

There are so many people here, all for one job, he though as his knees weakened, surely there’s no way I’ll be chosen. Despite his fears, Bucky remained in line. It couldn’t hurt to try, right? The wait was meticulous, each person taking at least a half hour. A few people left, tired of the long line which dwindled down slowly. Bucky was one of the last, but finally a maid beckoned him in. She led him down a few corridors to what appeared to be a study. A man who appeared to be Bucky’s age sat at a desk, looking rather annoyed. If Bucky had interviewed that many people, who would have been just as tired. The man was pretty muscular, but so was Bucky, and a little bulk never intimidated him. What intimidated Bucky was the immense wealth this man had. That desk alone could probably rent Bucky an apartment for at least a year by the looks of it. 

The man turned when he heard Bucky enter, eyes squinting at him. The man, who was most likely Mr. Rogers, the master of the house, was dressed in a suit and tie, clicking a pen rhythmically. “Sit,” he instructed, gesturing with his head towards the red velvet chair on the other side of the desk. Of course, Bucky did as he was told. “What is your name?” Mr. Rogers asked, scanning a page of notes.

“I’m James Barnes, sir.” He answered, forgoing his lifelong nickname “Bucky.” Mr. Rogers squinted once more, this time at his paper.

“I don’t have your name on my list, Mr. Barnes. Did you call ahead?” 

Oh shit. Bucky had never seen anything in the ad about calling ahead. “I apologize, sir, I wasn’t aware we were supposed to call. I must have missed it on the ad.” Bucky lowered his head, avoiding eye contact with Mr. Rogers. The interview didn’t seem to be going too well to begin with.

“You’re not the first,” the man said with a shrug, jotting down Bucky’s name. “Tell me, how old are you?” Mr. Rogers asked Bucky, his pen still resting on the paper. 

Bucky tried sitting up, hoping he looked a bit more proper when he answered. “I’m twenty-nine, sir, however I will be turning thirty this coming week.” He wondered briefly if he should have added that extra tidbit, seeing as it wasn’t asked for, but the other man didn’t seem too bothered by it.

“And you have a résumé with you?” Mr. Rogers asked, taking his eyes off of his sheet. This, Bucky had. Thank goodness he didn’t forget it on a park bench the other night. He nodded in response and reached into the burlap sack he brought with him. Bucky brought that sack everywhere, it was where he kept all of his possessions. At the moment, Bucky didn’t own too much. He handed the file over to Mr. Rogers and remained quiet as he scanned through it. “You’ve certainly done your fair share of work,” Mr. Rogers said once he closed the folder.

Bucky chuckled, brushing his bangs out of his face. “I suppose I have, sir.” Mr. Rogers nodded, however Bucky couldn’t really tell if it was in approval or not. 

“You can cook, I can see that. You’ve worked as a chef for several fine establishments, and you’ve never been fired. Tell me, why did you quit?” Mr. Rogers leaned forward on his elbows over the desk, a good foot closer to Bucky than he had been before. 

“Oh, well, my living arrangements can get a bit troublesome at times.” Bucky admitted, preferring not to disclose that his homelessness made it tough to make it into work every day. He’d be able to rent a cheap apartment every now and then, but that didn’t last the longest. His working hours were too wacky for the other tenants, they complained he woke them up every morning on his way back from work.

“Well I’m afraid this job would require that you live at the estate. Will that be a problem?” Mr. Rogers asked him firmly, now seeming much more businesslike than he had been before. 

“No problem at all,” Bucky said, hardly believing his ears, “that would be splendid.”

Mr. Rogers nodded, pleased at that, and went on with the job requirements. “Aside from cooking, you need to be able to do the laundry, help tidy the house, sort through certain documents and serve any personal needs I see fit.” Bucky nodded along with each word, knowing he was able to do every one of them.

“What personal needs, exactly?” Bucky asked, a bit unsure about that one. Mr. Rogers had listed most of the tasks that first came to mind.

Mr. Rogers shrugged nonchalantly, rolling his eyes in amusement. “You know, drawing up my bath, fetching me coffee, assisting me in my art,” Mr. Rogers paused, looking over Bucky from head to mid torso, where the desk blocked the rest, “Yes, art,” Mr. Rogers said, recovering, “and just general opinions on outfits and such. Helping me out.” Mr. Rogers nodded, assuring himself. Bucky wasn’t quite sure how he could help out with his art, but he’d try his best if by some miracle he got the job. 

They covered a few more brief topics, and finally Bucky left him with his phone number so he would be informed if he got the job. “Expect a call from Steve Rogers, that’s me. To be honest with you, James, you’re one of my favorite nominees. Expect a referral, at the least, if not a job.” Steve said with a comforting smile, slapping Bucky’s back in a friendly manner. 

“Thank you, sir. If it’s of any importance, I commonly go by Bucky. Sorry I didn’t inform you earlier.” Bucky said, glad that Steve seemed friendly enough. 

“Bucky, that’s cute,” Steve said, catching Bucky off guard. Cute? For heaven sakes, Bucky was a grown man, and muscular at that! Cute usually wasn’t associated with his name. “Have a nice day, Bucky.” Steve said, waving from the doorway as Bucky made his way down the walkway. There were no more people left, they must have grown tired of waiting so long. Bucky shrugged, unaware of the eyes that were trained on his every step. As soon as Bucky had stepped into the interview room, Steve had already decided who he planned on hiring.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky learns more about the job and enjoys no longer being homeless. Aside from that, more characters are introduced!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a lot longer than the last one, I'm not sure if that's good or bad. Either way, I'm going to continue to do my best to update this regularly. I can't promise though, especially once school starts back. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this! Please leave reviews so I can know how to make it better! I didn't proof read so I'm sorry for possible typos or sentences that don't make sense.

Like clockwork, Bucky received a phone call the very next day from the Rogers household. “Is this James Barnes?” A smooth voice asked from the other end of the call. It sounded rather young and feminine. 

The voice surprised Bucky, but he quickly realized it must have been the maid or maybe a secretary seeing as Mr. Rogers appeared to work from home. It wasn’t like Steve himself was going to call Bucky up. “Yes, that’s me. Is this about the job?” Bucky asked, slowing his pace and stopping at a bench while he was taking the call. 

“Yes sir, you’ll be happy to hear that Mr. Rogers would like you back sometime this week to reevaluate you. You are among three other applicants to get the job, the rest have been rejected. He would like to know what times would work best for you.” She spoke quickly, yet clearly, to Bucky. Bucky was a bit confused as to why Mr. Rogers didn’t just give him a time for the reevaluation. Most employers didn’t ask their future employees what worked best for them.

“Could you tell him anytime works for me? I could come over this afternoon if he’d like,” Bucky had nothing planned, therefore he figured why not get it done as soon as possible. There was a bit of shuffling on the other line, and then silence. Bucky could barely make out the hushed voice of the woman and the deeper tone of a male. 

In a few seconds, the line clicked back on and the woman’s voice rang loud and clear. “He says that would work just fine. 3:00 pm at the same address as before. Have a nice day.” 

The line clicked, and just like that the call was over. “Wow…” he mumbled to himself under his breath, trying to figure out how on Earth he’d come this far to getting the job. He didn’t look very presentable for the interview, and it was pretty awkward at first. Not only that, but the job would give him a place to stay, which was sort of ridiculous! Could the job get any more practical? 

Bucky continued to wander for the remaining time, picking up spare change and dollar bills that would pop up every now and then. He was unsure as to whether he should attempt to find some form of lunch. He was pretty sure there was a soup kitchen a few blocks over, but wasn’t sure exactly where it was. Bucky’s phone was a flip phone from the early 2000’s, so he wasn’t able to access any form of a map from there. He continued to wander in the general direction of where he believed the soup kitchen might be, but didn’t seem to be getting any closer than he had been before. 

He considered asking someone, but everyone was in such a hurry, pushing past him and nearly knocking him over. Bucky soon gave up on lunch and decided to go ahead and change into his one other pair of clothes. He didn’t want to show up to the interview the very next day with the same set of clothes on, that would only raise suspicions.

Bucky was at the mansion right on time. He rang the buzzer, and within a few seconds the front doors opened and a woman made her way down the pathway to the gate. “You must be James, right?” She asked, unlatching the gate and holding a hand out. “Steve says you go by Bucky, though.”

Bucky shook her hand, and though she looked small and thin, her handshake was just as strong, if not stronger than his. Bucky looked back down at her, intrigued by her strength. “Yeah, I’m Bucky,” he answered, letting go of the redhead’s hand. She smiled cheerily at him, then began to walk back to the front door.

“Please, follow me. My name is Natasha, and I’m head of security, as well as Steve’s good friend,” though she still appeared to be smiling, her tone suddenly became threatening, “If you are here to harm Steve or steal any of his possessions, I’d like you to know you won’t get away with it unscathed.” Her smile seemed genuine enough, but her words were unsettling. 

Bucky stumbled, chuckling nervously as he entered the building. Natasha was right behind him, watching like a hawk. She brought him to the same room he was in the other day, reluctantly shutting the door behind her after she left. “Bucky!” Steve exclaimed, looking rather happy to see him, “I’m so glad you could make it. I just had a few more questions concerning your capabilities to fit the job.”

Bucky nodded, sitting back down without being asked to. That totally escaped his mind. “I’d be happy to answer those,” Bucky responded with a hesitant smile. Steve whipped his notebook back out, the same page from the other day, and began.

“Due to housing arrangements, we are inclined to know if you have a wife or children that you would be parted from,” Steve looked happy enough when Bucky answered ‘no.’ “Great, secondly we need to know if you are currently employed elsewhere,” another ‘no’ from Bucky and yet another smile from Steve. The questions kept coming. “Any crimes committed?” “Do you have any mental illnesses?” “Do you require any prescription drugs?” All no’s from Bucky. “Have you had any past injuries that still impact your daily life?” 

Bucky bit his lip, glancing down at his arm. “Well, actually I do have one,” He said with a sigh. Bucky hadn’t even considered his arm, but injuries came up and now he had to confess. Steve raised an eyebrow, looking a bit shocked. “You see, a few years ago I got into a nasty car accident and my arm was badly damaged. The doctors considered amputating it, but they were able to save it. Now several of the bones in my arm are strengthened by metal rods, and it does pain me at times, but I swear it won’t prevent me from working hard.”

Steve sat back, sighing as he thought it over. “I do appreciate your honesty, Mr. Barnes.” He admitted, rolling his head back. After a minute or so of silence, Steve pulled himself back up. “I don’t think it will be a problem, Mr. Barnes, don’t worry about it. Now for the last bit of our time here today I’d like to ask for a urine sample, we need to drug test you.” Steve concluded, reaching down and pulling a small cup out from behind his desk. He handed it to Bucky, and told him where he could find a bathroom.

Bucky was incredibly grateful that Steve disregarded his arm. There had been a few times he hadn’t been employed just because of it. There was always a chance Steve was lying to appear friendly and would hire someone else instead, but Bucky was too distracted by the bathroom he just walked into to worry about that. He felt so out of place in the pristine room with a marble countertop surrounding the gold plated sink. The toilet was made in the same fashion, and the whole room was rather breathtaking for a bathroom. Bucky’s favorite part was the bouquet of colorful flowers in a vase next to the sink. He got his business done quickly, but felt compelled to linger in the bathroom. He didn’t, however, and quickly returned to the room Steve was in.

“Excellent, we’ll call you back once the results are in. Have a nice day, Bucky,” Steve said, dismissing him with the wave of a hand. Bucky was rather sorry to leave, but anticipated learning if he’d get the job or not.

By the next week, Bucky was back in the mansion with the new knowledge that yes, he had gotten the job. He was no longer homeless and unemployed, and not only that, his employer Steve seemed really kind. “You’ll be staying in this room. Will it suit your needs?” Steve asked, ushering him into a small, tidy bedroom with a bathroom attached. The room itself was small for a mansion as large as it was, probably about 10x10 and was furnished with a dresser and a queen bed that took up most of the space. The bathroom had a shower, a toilet and a sink. To Bucky, the room was unbelievable. 

“Thank you so much, sir,” Bucky said, enthralled with his new room.

“Did you bring your things to get settled in?” Steve asked, looking over at Bucky’s burlap sack, stuffed with his few belongings. Bucky avoided looking at Steve, suddenly ashamed and unsure of how to answer. “Never mind, I’ll leave you alone for a bit so you can get settled in. There’s a uniform inside the dresser you can go ahead and change into. Meet me in the study once you’re done.” Steve left Bucky alone in the room, though he was still a tad bit confused.

The first thing Bucky did was take a shower. It was nice to feel the warm water soothe his aching muscles and to relax for once. The uniform was where Steve said it was, and in the dresser was a pair of black dress pants, a button down shirt, suspenders and a vest. With those items was a note informing Bucky to tell Steve if they didn’t fit, and to ask him if Bucky ever needed replacement clothes.

After Bucky combed and dried his hair (which actually looked very nice when properly taken care of,) he emptied his sack onto the bed. The contents of the bag weren’t very grand, but they were enough for Bucky. A journal with a red leather cover, a t-shirt, a sweater, a pair of pants, some loose change and a brush. Wow was he pathetic, having so little. Bucky used to own a little more, but after he was fired from his job at an antique shop he ended up selling most of his things for cash. He stuck his journal in a drawer on the nightstand next to the bed and threw the rest of his stuff into one of the dresser drawers. 

Luckily, Bucky remembered where the study was and was able to find it on his own. He knocked before entering, and when Steve gave him the affirmative Bucky pushed open the large, wooden door. “How do the clothes fit?” Steve asked, stepping up from his chair. 

“They fit perfectly,” Bucky said, smoothing out the vest and joining Steve next to the desk. “So, where do we start?”

“Well, I figured I should show you the place first,” Steve said, handing Bucky a small sheet of paper off of his desk. “This is a map of the house, you can use it while you’re still getting to know the place.” Bucky thanked him, accepting the paper and looking it over. The floor plan was complicated and it almost looked like a maze. Bucky would definitely be using the map often. “Let’s head to the kitchen, shall we?”

Steve led Bucky down a few sets of stairs and through several long corridors until the smell of baked goods began to waft around them. Steve pulled out a ring of keys and unlocked the sturdy door, the scents hitting Bucky at full blast once the door was opened. It was a good deal hotter in that room due to all of the ovens and stoves. “Here are the kitchens, they cook for everyone on the estate, including the workers,” Steve ushered Bucky in and showed him around, showing off his top notch equipment and state of the art chefs. “I’d like you to meet Thor, he’s in charge of the kitchens.” 

A tall, buff man with long, straggly blonde hair smiled down at him, wiping his messy hands off on his apron. “Nice to make your acquaintance,” Thor said, holding out a hand for Bucky to shake. Bucky’s hand looked small compared to Thor’s, and Bucky began to wonder why everyone he met so far seemed incredibly strong. 

“It’s nice to meet you too,” Bucky said, pulling away and grinning. Thor took over from there, introducing him to other employees, showing him some of the different dishes, and where certain foods were prepared. “It sure is busy in here,” Bucky commented, gazing at the bustling people that seemed to form a blur in the humid room.

“Yes, well, we’ve got a lot to do. Clint’s kid—I’m sorry, Mr. Barton’s kid has a birthday coming up, and we have to make sure everything is perfect,” Thor informed him, leaning over the shoulder of a young lady kneading dough and nodding at her in approval. 

“That’s this upcoming week, isn’t it?” Steve asked, pulling his phone out to check. Thor nodded, adding that it was Wednesday, then continued through the long room. Eventually they reached the end, and Steve and Bucky bid Thor farewell.

“You’ll be fetching my meals from the kitchens and bringing them to me. On their days off, you’ll be expected to prepare my meals. You’ll find anything and everything you could possibly need in there, don’t worry,” Steve told Bucky as they began another confusing journey through the house. “I usually eat breakfast around eight, lunch between noon to one, and dinner at seven.”

“Good to know,” Bucky said as he did his best to memorize those times. He hadn’t brought a pen with him, though he now realized he should have brought something to take notes on. “So where are we going now?” Bucky asked, catching up with Steve. Steve walked rather quickly.

“I’ll be showing you to the dining room. I don’t usually eat there, I prefer my room, but you should know where it is for exceptions,” Steve told him, glancing over his shoulder to speak to Bucky. The room wasn’t as large as the kitchens, and it was rather empty (people wise). There was a long table with 20 chairs on each side, china plates set at each spot and fancy folded napkins over top of those. The centerpiece was similar to the flowers Bucky had seen in the bathroom, and he wondered if they were grown on the estate.

“This is nice,” Bucky spoke, breaking the silence between the two. Steve nodded, but didn’t seem overly fond of the room.

“Let’s move on,” Steve said suddenly, grabbing Bucky’s arm and dragging him out of the room. There seemed to be a room for everything in Steve’s mansion. A music room, an exercise room, a small theater, an indoor greenhouse, a swimming pool, a nursery; Bucky was surprised they didn’t have a bowling alley. “This is my studio, please be careful not to touch anything, some things have yet to dry,” Steve warned, slipping through the barely cracked door. Bucky did the same, gasping when he saw countless paintings and sketches littering the messy room. Paints were thrown everywhere and blank sheets formed unbalanced piles. “Sorry it’s so messy,” Steve said, pushing a few things aside.

“These are good,” Bucky murmured, admiring a few paintings, “Are they all yours?”

“Afraid so,” Steve replied, face going red. “Whenever I’m stressed, I like to come in here. If there’s ever a time you can’t find me, check here first.” Bucky nodded in response due to his sudden loss for words. “Anyway, if it doesn’t bother you too much it’d be nice to have a reference every now and then for my paintings,” Steve continued, looking back over at Bucky.

Bucky began to stutter as he tried to formulate a response, glancing back and forth but never at Steve. “I- Sure, of course. I mean, there are probably better people to look at, but I’ll- yeah, of course,” Bucky finally spit out. Steve chuckled at his behavior.

“Okay, moving on,” Steve said with a flourish, exiting the small room, “I’ll show you the rest of the building.”

They were cut short when a fuming man came running up to Steve and shoved him to the ground, shouting words so quickly Bucky couldn’t make them out. “What the Hell, Steve!” The man cried out as he held Steve down, shaking him back and forth.

Bucky, not quite sure if he should, grabbed the new man by the shoulders and hauled him off of Steve, asking him to please calm down. Steve got up, his facial expression dim as he dusted off his clothes. “What’s wrong this time, Tony?” Steve asked, exasperated. Bucky loosened his grip and allowed ‘Tony’ to break away.

“You promised me the parts weeks ago, and you know what? Still no parts! I don’t know why I continue helping out your sorry ass if you don’t provide!” Tony shouted, stepping closer to Steve. “If those parts aren’t in by next Friday, I’m not going to work on your project anymore.” 

“Tony, please calm down, I’m sure we can fix this. Bucky, why don’t you head upstairs? My room is marked on the map, once you find it just wait for me. I’ll try to be quick.” Steve said as he gritted his teeth in frustration. Bucky nodded and started up the stairs, fully out of sight, but slowed when he heard their conversation commence.

“And who might that be? A new boy toy for you to fuck with? I thought we were a thing, but no, apparently not! For someone so patriotic I figured you’d be a bit more loyal,” Tony sounded outraged, and Bucky could practically hear the spit flying out of his mouth.

“Tony, I told you, that was one time. We were never officially together, and I have no obligations to you. Our relationship is fully business related. Besides, Bucky is here as an employee, not a prostitute.” Steve sounded tense.

“Sure, keep telling yourself that. Once you stop staring at his ass all the time, I’ll believe you,” Tony said lowly, almost too quiet for Bucky to hear.

“Oh yeah, you know so much? You witnessed us interacting for how long, a minute? Besides, glancing at his ass a few times doesn’t mean anything, it’s not as if you didn’t check him out as he was leaving.” Bucky gulped at Steve's response, taking note to how Steve didn't deny it.

Tony said something else, but Bucky was too busy going back up the stairs to hear it. His face was burning, and he felt incredibly ashamed to have been eavesdropping. He disregarded the whole conversation and quickly found Steve’s room. It was very orderly and tidy, and probably three times the size of Bucky’s. There was a king sized bed, a desk, a dresser, and several other fine looking pieces of furniture. Attached to Steve’s room was spacious bathroom with an elegant tub in the corner, an incredibly nice shower, and a very high-tech looking toilet. The sink was just as expensive looking as everything else in the room, and Bucky began to feel a bit overwhelmed. 

“Bucky, you in there?” Steve asked a few minutes later, creaking open the door.

“Yeah,” Bucky said, not wanting to look at Steve after listening to that conversation. The guilt was killing him.

“Sorry about Tony, he can get very pumped up,” Steve said, taking a seat at the desk in his room. “Anyway, this is my room. You’ll start each day by bringing food from the kitchens up here at eight, and go from there. My schedule may change a bit every day, but for the most part it’s all very similar. Are you alright, Bucky?” Steve asked, noticing Bucky’s silence.

“Yeah, just a bit… overwhelmed, I guess.” Bucky said, holding his head in his hands. 

Steve looked worried, walking over to pat Bucky on the back. “I don’t want you getting sick on your first day, why don’t you go back to your room for now? You’ll need to go down to the kitchens around 6:45 to get my dinner, so that’ll give you a few hours of rest.”

Bucky nodded in agreement, then left to find his way back to his room. He wasn’t quite sure he’d be able to manage if there were any more ‘Tony’s’ out there, but he was definitely going to try his best to please Steve and keep the job.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More shenanigans commence as Bucky gets to know his coworkers a little better

Bucky fell back on the bed, sighing in relief. He was glad he was alone and had a little bit of time to think. Things had definitely improved, and for that he was immensely grateful. What troubled Bucky was the conversation he had overheard. Of course, Bucky wouldn’t mind if Steve was into guys, that was fine by him. He was just worried it might interfere with their overall relationship if Steve was interested in Bucky. In the long run, if Steve pursued it, Bucky could end up losing the job due to certain predicaments. Things always seemed to come up, and the last thing Bucky wanted was to put his new job at risk.

After clearing his mind, Bucky decided to explore the estate a little more before heading back down to the kitchens. He examined the map given to him by Steve and decided to go look at the gardens out back. Navigating turned out to be simple enough as long as Bucky paid enough attention to the map, and soon he was walking out onto a patio that overlooked a large expanse of tulips, lilies, rose bushes, flowering trees and finely trimmed ivy. 

Stepping stones were placed throughout the garden, creating clear paths through the foliage. Bucky hunched over to examine the multi-colored tulips when he heard someone clear their throat. “Excuse me, exactly who are you?” A young man asked, tapping Bucky on the back.

Bucky jumped in response to the sudden noise, tumbling down off of his feet and onto his butt. “Oh, sorry, I’m Bucky. I work for Steve; it’s my first official day,” Bucky informed the man, who was feigning interest by stroking his goatee. 

“Right, I was told about you. And what are you doing here, Bucky?” The man seemed rather defensive and almost upset that Bucky was there. This confused him.

Bucky stood back up to face the man, apologizing once more. “I didn’t mean to intrude, Steve just gave me some free time to calm down. This whole place is pretty overwhelming. He gave me a map and I figured I’d look at the garden. It’s lovely, by the way,” Bucky added, smiling at the stranger. “So, who are you?”

“The name’s Sam,” the man said reluctantly, holding a hand out to Bucky, “and I’m in charge of landscaping.”

Bucky shook Sam’s hand, his smile widening at that. “You’re the gardener!” He realized, nodding in respect. Sam mumbled something about preferring the term ‘landscaper.’ Bucky chuckled to himself, glad to have met yet another new person. Sam seemed nice enough, it was just a bit tough to talk to him at times, or so it seemed.

“Anyway,” Sam began, moving on, “As of now these gardens are still in progress. We’re trying to get them ready for the upcoming birthday party, I’m sure you’ve heard of it by now. Feel free to drop in later, but we’re kind of busy right now.” As if on cue, a figure appeared hauling a bag of soil overtop of their heads. 

“Where should I set this down?” They called out, clearly directing it at Sam. Sam waved ‘bye’ to Bucky then hustled over to his helper.

Bucky went back inside the mansion and located the kitchens on the map. He still had half an hour until he had to go there to get Steve’s dinner, but he figured it’d be better to get there early on his first day in case he got lost. Bucky made good time on his way to the kitchens, only making one or two wrong turns and quickly correcting them. By 6:30 he had reached the kitchens a good fifteen minutes early. Not wanting to disturb the workers, he wandered around a bit more until he found himself back in the dining room. This time, the first thing he noticed was the large portrait of a woman with blonde hair and a gentle smile. Though Bucky had only seen a few of Steve’s paintings, the portrait looked a lot like Steve’s style. Underneath the portrait was a plaque with the name “Sarah Rogers—May she rest in peace.” 

Questions began to fill Bucky’s mind: who was Sarah Rogers? How had she died? Was this way Steve wasn’t fond of the dining room? Bucky realized it was almost time to grab Steve’s dinner and rushed out before he could piece anything else together. 

“Bucky, nice to see you again,” Thor said, holding the door open for the shorter man. Thor was wearing the same apron as earlier, and his hair had been pulled back into a tight bun. “I’m assuming you’re here for Steve’s dinner,” he said knowingly. 

“Yes, that’s right,” Bucky responded, looking back and forth. As always, the kitchens were busy and Bucky had no idea what to get Steve. “If you don’t mind me asking—“

“OUT OF THE WAY!” Someone cried, toppling over and dropping a pot of soup on floor. The clang of the pot silenced all of the workers and Thor slowly turned his head, annoyance written on his face rather clearly. Bucky jumped out of the way as the liquid slowly trickled across the floor, not wanting to mess up his new clothes. “I apologize, it won’t happen again,” the person whimpered, desperately trying to wipe up the soup.

“Isn’t that what you said last time?” Thor asked, raising an eyebrow. The younger boy shrugged, smiling mischievously. “I apologize for Peter, he’s new. Tony convinced us to hire the guy.” They moved past the spill and to a cart a few stations over. “Here’s the dinner, you can take the whole cart if you’d like or you can just put it on a tray. Just do whatever works best for you.”

On the cart was a gourmet cheeseburger with large steak fries and a coke. Bucky was puzzled as to why such a wealthy person would eat a fatty hamburger. Thor chuckled, notices Bucky’s expression. “That Steve,” he said with a knowing smirk, “he is the most American guy I’ve ever met.”

Bucky raised an eyebrow, accepting this new tidbit of info as he raised the tray off of the cart. “That’s nice to know, thanks Thor,” Bucky bid farewell, exiting the kitchens with the meal. 

“Bye Bucky, see you later!” Thor called back, an honest smile on his face. 

Because Bucky was carrying the tray, he couldn’t really get his map out. Luckily, Bucky’s memory was working splendidly that evening, and he was able to navigate back to the room, arriving right before the clock struck seven. “Steve?” He called, leaning against the door. He couldn’t quite open it at the moment.

There was some fumbling inside, then a click as Steve unlocked the door and let Bucky in. Bucky almost dropped the tray when he saw Steve, fresh out of the shower. Steve wore a towel around his waist, but that was it. Beads of water ran down his face and his short blonde hair was a soaking mess. “Sir…” Bucky began, jaw agape, “I’ve got your dinner here.”

Steve smiled, accepting the tray and waving Bucky in. “Sorry about my appearance, I’ll get dressed real quick,” Steve said bashfully, shutting the door behind Bucky. Bucky did his best to ignore Steve’s finely sculpted back as he ruffled through his drawers for something to put on. Bucky didn’t notice the way his muscles rippled underneath his skin and he definitely didn’t watch each droplet of water roll down Steve’s back. After what felt like forever Steve grabbed a few articles or clothing and scurried into his bathroom, getting dressed swiftly. When he entered his main bedroom once more, he realized that Bucky hadn’t moved. “You can have a seat, Bucky,” Steve told him as he sat down to his dinner. Bucky nodded, glancing around the room until he found a chair in the corner of the room.

“So Bucky, I’ve made you a list of everybody living at the estate so you don’t get any surprises. The only people here at the moment, aside from the staff of course, are the Maximoff twins. Our family adopted them, I’m sure you’ll encounter them eventually. Clint Barton, a close family friend also stays with us, but he’s away on vacation right now. The upcoming birthday is his kid’s. We’ve also got Dr. Banner, Tony works for him. They’re building something complex and expensive, I’m a bit old fashioned so I don’t really follow their research. Other than that, everybody’s got relatives that’ll visit occasionally. You’ll be alerted, of course, when the others return.” Steve was trying to hand Bucky a new sheet of paper, but had started talking and wasn’t quite sure where to stop for breath.

Bucky held his hand out, taking the paper from Steve. “Thank you, sir.”

“You can call me Steve you know, as long as you do your job,” Steve said, backing away from Bucky and heading back to his meal. “Staff dinner is at seven thirty, so you may leave if you wish.”

Bucky was still looking over the list when Steve caught him off-guard. “Leave already?” He asked, pulling his eyes away from the list and looking at Steve instead. “Should I report back to you afterwards, or will you be good for the night?” For his first day on the job, Bucky didn’t feel like he did a whole lot. The only labor he did was bringing Steve dinner, and really, how difficult was that?

“You can drop by afterwards, I can give you a bit more work for tomorrow,” Steve said, almost as if he could hear what Bucky was thinking. As not to disturb Steve anymore, Bucky left quickly and quietly.

“Bucky?” A familiar voice asked, the footsteps behind him speeding up, “Bucky!” She exclaimed, confirming that it was him. “Yes, I thought he’d hire you. It’s me, Natasha, remember?”

Bucky turning, taking in the redhead. She was dressed in all black clothing, similar to before, and her shoulder length hair was loose and curling around everywhere. Bucky wasn’t sure if he should be afraid of her after last time or not. “Hey Miss Head of Security,” Bucky quipped, causing Natasha to roll her eyes.

“Sorry about that,” She said, pushing her hair behind her ears. “I gotta intimidate the new guys, you know? Make sure they know what they’re getting into. I’m still watching you, Bucky,” her smirk told Bucky that she was just playing with him, but she still spooked him a bit. “So are you on your way to the staff dinner?” She asked, falling into step with him as they traversed through the halls.

“Yeah, Steve told me it starts at 7:30,” Bucky answered politely, trying to get Natasha’s trust. 

“Sure does,” she confirmed as she took a sharp turn to the left, “you can sit next to me if you want, I can introduce you to the rest of the guys.”

“Thank you!” He smiled, doing his best to engage in the conversation. “So, how long have you been working here?” Bucky inquired, glancing at his new friend.

Natasha smiled, thinking back to the past. “Quite some time,” She reminisced, a fond smile on her face. “Almost ten years, I’d guess.” 

Bucky nodded, impressed by how long she’d been there. “And I’m assuming you like it here?”

“Yes, I love it. Steve is such a kind guy compared to other bosses, I’m sure you’ve realized that by now. Just don’t get on his bad side, you wouldn’t like him when he’s angry.”

They reached the kitchens a few minutes early, and Natasha began to fraternize with a few new people Bucky hadn’t met before. Sam joined them, making a few bad puns before Thor called for their attention. “As some of you know, we’ve got a new member to the family,” Thor bellowed, his voice filling the whole room. “Bucky Barnes, a kind gent. For clarification, I thought I should explain how dinner here works again, because some of you still don’t get it,” Thor sneered at a certain group of people, causing the crowd to erupt in laughter. “Anyway Bucky (and others,) we work like a buffet. Find a plate, get in line and grab what you can, whilst being orderly. Those causing trouble will be sent to the back of the line. Once we’re done, everybody helps to clean up. Now how about we let Bucky go first?”

The crowd was a bit less enthusiastic about that, but still agreed with Thor. The blonde had clearly earned the crowd’s respect. Natasha showed Bucky to the plates and helped him with figuring out where the line started. Soon, a long, winding line had formed behind Bucky and everybody was piling mounds of food on their plates. “We usually go sit in the dining room if you want to join,” Natasha hinted, elbowing Bucky lightly.

“We’re allowed in there?” Bucky questioned, looking at Natasha with a doubtful face. 

“Of course we do, no one else ever eats there!” She urged, pulling him along after her. Just like she said, a good group of people had gathered in there. Amongst them was Sam, Peter, and, to his disappointment, Tony. Thor was right behind them. “How’s the gardening going, Sam?” Natasha teased as she sat down next to the animated man, who had been in the middle of telling a highly exaggerated story. Sam frowned at her, shaking his head in disappointment.

“Just fine, how’s babysitting?” He retorted, a sly grin on his face.

The two began to babble back and forth as they ate their meals, exchanging laughter as they did so. Bucky sat down next to Natasha, listening in and being quite amused by their shenanigans. Bucky began to feel as though this could become his home, that he could feel appreciated here. “Bucky? Bucky?” Natasha asked, poking him out of his trance.

“Yeah?” He asked, turning towards her. “Sorry, I kinda zoned out.”

“Don’t do that on the job, buddy,” Sam joked, giving him a half-assed smile from the other end of the table.

“Is that suggestion from experience?” Bucky jeered, causing Natasha to let out a short, brief chuckle as Sam’s face fell.

“Bucky Barnes, who would’ve thought…” Sam said, his smile forming again as he shook his head and rolled his eyes in disbelief. Dinner went on like that, joking with Sam and Natasha as well as having meaningful conversations with Thor. Tony didn’t speak to him, which he was glad of. Tony did, however, glare at him for most of the meal. Bucky did his best to brush it off, just because Tony didn’t like him didn’t mean no one else liked him. 

Bucky thanked Thor for the meal, helped to clean up and then made one last stop at Steve’s door before heading to bed. “Sir, do you require any more help for the night?” Bucky asked after tapping on the door softly.

“No, it’s fine for today. Tomorrow, could you bring my breakfast at 7:30 rather than 8:00? I’d like a little extra time in my studio before the day starts,” Steve said, his voice fairly muffled through the thick wooden door.

“Of course, sir. 7:30,” Bucky repeated, praying that he’d remember to get up early enough. Steve didn’t say anything else, so Bucky left to door and meandered back to his room. On the way there, he ran into Tony. “Oh, hello!” Bucky said with a nod and a smile, making Tony flinch. 

“Don’t speak to me,” Tony said, bumping into Bucky as they passed. Bucky stumbled, looking back at Tony in disappointment. He really wished they had started out on the right foot, it troubled him that Tony disliked him so much. 

“There’s nothing I can do about it now…” Bucky sighed, lazily pushing open his door and flopping onto his bed. “Breakfast at 7:30….”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been a bit since I last updated. I got pretty sick, and I still feel kind of crummy, but I'll try to get back on track soon. Thank you guys so much for all the feedback I've gotten! It means so much to me to hear how much you enjoy the story! Expect a little more Bucky and Steve interaction next chapter!


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